The Path of Heroes: Volume 1
by Jet Knight 00
Summary: The beginning of the tale of the fight against Fuse, a villain that was so powerful that it took everyone to stand against him. This beginning, however, focuses on a small group who are not heroes yet. Watch as their lives take a turn for better or worse.


(Author's Note): Hello everyone. For those of you reading this for the first time or do not remember me from the FF(Fusionfall) Forums, this is the first, but not last, of the Fusionfall stories I have planned. For those who do remember, this is a major rewrite of the story that I wrote back then.

Anyways, this story will be separated into many parts, as Fusionfall cannot be simply explained in just one story. There will also be some other stuff that I'll reveal later on, but for now, this will do. I'll post more information on my profile as time passes, so if this story interests you, check on it every now and then to keep up to date.

Now then, before I begin, here's the disclaimer:

Disclaimer: I do not own Fusionfall, its characters, etc. They belong to Cartoon Network, the people who made the various characters, and the people who made the game. I do own the OCs that are in this story, although I will not reveal info on them until they come up.

Now then, enjoy the read. Please read and review (Flames are not advised, though and will be ignored).

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><p><em>"In the scheme of things, there are always good guys and bad guys. Good and Evil. The villains and heroes always seem to come in many shapes and forms, each having their own unique ideals about how things should be done. While the villains attempt to bend others to listen to their ideals, the heroes always are able to leap in to save the day, thwarting the villain's plans and protecting the weak.<em>

_Even so, they never rest, always threatening the vast reaches of the universe. Fortunately, the heroes always seem to be always be one step ahead of them, and so, form organizations to help maintain peace among the locals, keeping order intact and the universal balance between good and evil stable._

_But what if there was something that neither hero nor villain could deal with alone? A being so powerful, that no one person could stand against it? _

_Unfortunately, there was always such a thing as that every once in a while, especially in my line of work. What is my line of work, you ask? Well, let's say for now that I am a hero: one that guides others heroes on the correct path and leave it at that. _

_Now then, where we? Ah yes! I was just about to tell a interesting tale of one of the dangerous villains ever to have to been fought. Now then, usually as with all stories, we must start at the beginning, but this time, I shall make an exception. Let us go back to when this incident began to take root, and see how this unfolds...a path for heroes._

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_**The Path of Heroes**_

_**Volume 1: Past, Present, and Future**_

**Prologue**

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_5 years ago..._

_"It all began about 5 years ago, at the most. Back then, before the incident, the universe was a peaceful place. Even though there were threats such as bounty hunters, nasty villains such as the likes of Vilgax, and tyrants opressing their own people to be concerned about, we also had many allies to help bring peace and order (myself included, of course). The group of soldiers that enforce the law known as the Plumbers have been growing steadily in number, and have already expanded their forces across many known galaxies. Ever since Maxwell Tennyson returned from retirement, morale has been high._

_The Galvin known as Azmuth has also lended a hand every now and then, although he prefers not to be involved too much in Plumber affairs. His main focus as of now is rebuilding his home world (which he has almost already finished). I have had many friendly conversations with him, though, and we have gotten along well, I suppose. Even now, it seems to be that he is building a device that would supposedly surpass the capabilities of his previous invention, the Omnitrix._

_Of course, the heroes that have shown the greatest promise most of all are none other than Kevin E. Levin, Gwendolyn Tennyson, and Benjamin Tennyson. Ever since Ben and Gwen returned, they have overcame numerous challenges while following in their grandfather's footsteps, and also made new friends (and enemies, unfortunately) along the way. They have managed to stop what could have been one of the largest invasions on Earth to date, defeated Vilgax once again, and are now official Plumbers._

_Unfortunately, this time, the threat that was about to come was much larger than the last, and extremely dangerous, to add to it._

_Several weeks after Vilgax's attempt to conquer the world, a startling situation was beginning to unfold all over the universe, as planets suddenly began disappearing without so much as a trace. The Plumbers had begun a large-scale investigation into this, but have had no such luck discovering what was the cause. The only evidence they had, though, was that in every case, they would find small traces of a strange and mysterious green substance._

_At least, until one day...when a report came in, saying that Planet Galvin had come under attack once more. What was odd about this report, though, was the information, reporting that the culprit was unidentified. Immediately responding to the situation, many ships were deployed to identify and eliminate the threat. Also, I felt the need to investigate, so I went without hesitation._

_"Unfortunately, the events that would start after this incident would be much more catastrophic than we predicted..."_

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Inside Azmuth's Headquarters, Planet Galvin

A squad of Plumbers were running, trying to get the main control room where Azmuth was. They were badly wounded after running into enemy forces. There seemed to be only a small amount of them running, maybe about 8 at the most. They held their energy rifles at the ready, wearing the same colored suits as the helmets they wore hid their faces.

The group had just managed to reach an elevator, going in only when one of them confirmed it was safe. Since the main control room was inaccessible through other methods, they had to make their way through the building from the floor they chose. When they got to the floor they wanted, they scanned the perimeter for any life forms nearby. Finding no one nearby, they took a moment to rest.

"That was too close for comfort. I still can't believe our weapons didn't do much against them." One of the Plumbers said, anger hiding in his voice. As he threw off the helmet he was wearing, the frustration could clearly be seen on this man's face. "What the hell were those things anyway! I've never seen such monstrosities like those before."

One of the Plumbers turned to look at him and walked towards him. Judging from his stature, he was probably their current leader. Taking off his helmet, he looked at the younger soldier straight in the eyes, as if trying to reason with him.

"Calm down, Blake," said the leader, "This is no time to lose your focus. Just relax for a moment."

Blake nodded, then took a moment to relax. Immediately, he seemed to calm down, then frowned as if he was disappointed with himself.

"Sorry, sir." He said. "I was out of line, speaking like that-"

"Don't worry about it. Your nerves were still rattled from what happened earlier. To be honest, I'm surprised you managed to keep control for that long."

His scanners then picked up something, perking his interest.

"It's just another floor or two upward, this way, men." he said, looking up ahead. "I'll lead the way. Blake, you cover us from behind just in case."

"Yes sir." Blake replied.

The group continued on, unaware of the threat that was approaching them. While the leader seemed calm and relaxed, Blake was somewhat alert, watching for any sign of danger.

_I have to keep focused, _He thought. _I must not fail...not after that..._

As they walked, Blake noticed something resembling a tentacle moving about the area. Before he could alert his commander, the arm grabbed hold, putting the leader of the group in a choke hold as it attempted to drag him away.

"Sir!" He yelled out, his rifle pointed at the tentacle. With a swift motion, Blake fired, severing it clean through, and freeing his superior as he took some time to catch his breath.

"Are you okay?" Blake asked.

There was no time for him to answer back, however. Upon firing that shot, though, a group of monsters with tentacles on their backs appeared from everywhere. Their appearances differed, but they shared the quality of their skin being green, and resembled mutant soldiers mimicking the appearance of the Plumbers. Their eyes were pure red and they had no mouths, but you could somehow tell they were angry (especially the one who Blake wounded).

"Damn it all! It's an ambush!" One of the plumbers said.

The fake Plumbers then assumed a firing stance as they somehow formed rifles similar to theirs.

"Not good. Take cover!"

It was however, too late as the enemy opened fire on the small squad of Plumbers. As they scattered to avoid being hit, some were unlucky and were instantly killed on the spot. The odds were against them, as they were forced to be on the defensive.

"Damn it, these things are good!" One of the soldiers shouted, "They already took down half our group!"

_At this rate, we'll never reach Azmuth in time, _Blake thought.

In the midst of the battle, a lone grenade could be seen flying towards the enemy group. As it landed, it released a large cloud of smoke which obscured either side's view of the others. Realizing what it was, Blake turned to his squad leader, who had just gathered the remaining Plumbers.

"Sir, that was..." Blake started. There was no answer, however, as the leader motioned them to him.

"Quickly, now! While they are distracted!" the leader yelled out. "We can't let them reach Azmuth first!"

They then headed off, zigzagging, dashing, and whatever else possible to avoid capture. As the creatures approached, the plumbers opened fire on them, blasting them to nothing but green chunks of goo. But every time one was destroyed, another would come out and take its place. The chase continued for at least a few minutes until they found a staircase, which they dashed upward.

"There's no end to them!"

"Just a little further..." Blake said.

After he said that, a flurry of monsters lurched out and grabbed the leader, dragging him away from the group by the legs.

"Commander!" They shouted.

_No...not again,_ Blake thought.

"Don't worry about me! Just get to Azmuth now! GO! " the leader said, taking out a grenade before turning away from his squad. "Die, you freaks of nature!"

With one swift motion, the grenades were hurled at the ceiling, causing a massive explosion that collapsed the ceiling, separating the other plumbers from the monsters as a large dust cloud obscured their view.

After the dust cleared, there was just silence within the group.

That was almost too close for comfort," one of the Plumbers said, "We managed to escape, but at a heavy price.

"What are we going to do now? Our squad leader is dead, we're outmatched, and we have no hope of winning." Blake said.

"Snap the hell out of it, man. Like he said, there may still be hope left. But first we need to get to Azmuth before they do. At least, that's what they would have wanted."

"Now let's hurry, that blockade won't hold them off for long."

Blake hesitated for a moment, but remembered his leader's words.

"Right then. Let's move."

They ran up the staircase and found a large door a small distance away. They managed to make their way inside the room and found a very small being nearby. He seemed very old in appearance and wore greenish grabs around most of his body. In his left hand, he held an odd looking staff whose top resembled that of a telescope or magnifying glass. His attention was currently focused on the large security screens before him before their arrival caught his notice.

"I see you have arrived," Azmuth said as he walked toward them, "So what has happened so far?"

"It's not going well," the Plumber replied, "The enemy's forces were too strong for us to handle. Most of us were wiped out. We're pretty much doomed unless we get help."

Azmuth then turned and looked out a nearby window, his face unshowing of any emotions. All he could do was witness the coming end of his home world...again.

"We've never faced such a threat like this...if this continues..."

"..Then all hope is lost for Galvin, as well as the rest of the universe." He finished as he turned to the remaining Plumbers.

"Not all is lost," said a voice from almost out of nowhere, "There still could a chance to save everyone else from certain doom."

A flash of blinding light startled them as a man then appeared suddenly behind them. He appeared to be somewhat in his late 20s or 30s (to the ordinary person), had black hair, and was wearing goggles currently. He also was wearing a white lab coat and had a gold watch in his right hand.

"So it's you again, Paradox." Azmuth said as he turned his attention to him.

"Come with me, we need to leave now before they get here," Paradox said.

Azmuth was about to argue, but Paradox added, "And please try not to make this as hard as last time. Time is of the essence."

"...Very well then," Azmuth replied.

A loud crash then shook the area, knocking everyone off their feet as it lasted for only a seconds. Their attention was then turned to the screens, as it showed more of the monsters coming in, wrecking equipment and causing chaos before destroying the cameras watching.

Blake seemed to look at the screens with more anger than worry. "Oh great, more of them are coming."

"We must hurry and get out of here. Everyone, gather around me, quickly!" Paradox said as the enemy was nearing this room.

The Plumbers and Azmuth huddled around Paradox as he did something with his watch. Then, in an instant, they vanished. The room was silent of sound as a group of those same mutant soldiers broke into it. Unlike the others, there was something about them that gave off a symbol of authority.

"...I was sure our scouts informed us that Azmuth was here, they must have fled." one of the troops said as he looked around.

"We'll find him. He can't have gone far." Another of them said. "We must report this to our lord."

"Agreed."

The odd person out then took out what looked to be a high-tech communicator from his pocket. Turning it on, a holographic screen then appeared in front of the troops as everyone else bowed down before the image of the figure appearing on it.

"Report...has Azmuth been taken care of?" it said in a dark tone.

"My Lord ," the soldier standing started, "Azmuth appears to have fled just recently, although he still may be in the surrounding area."

The figure appeared to be frustrated at first, then showed no signs of disappointed after considering what they had reported.

"...I suppose the end result does not matter," the figure said, "Regardless, his planet is doomed anyway and there's nothing he can do about it."

"Still, we must ensure that he is eliminated."

Just then, another soldier bearing the same appearance as most of the others came into the room. As it approached the image on the monitor, it bowed before speaking.

"My lord, we have received word that Galvin is already being absorbed to Planet Fusion as we speak." said the soldier as it stood up.

"Good," the figure answered, an evil grin forming as it was pleased, "Now onto the next world. What's the closest planet from here?"

"Sensors show that the closest inhabited world is Earth, my lord."

"Tell them to set coordinates for Earth right away, In the meantime, send a scouting group to investigate this new world."

"Will do, my lord."

As the image disappears from view, the soldiers saluted, then went back to accomplish their tasks. One soldier, however, stopped short for a moment, turning back to admire the view that this area provided.

"Such a shame that this planet will be absorbed in such a short while. I would have liked to see what it was truly like before we took it over."

"Oh well, then...there's always the next planet."

The solider then left, leaving the world to its inevitable fate.


End file.
